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Anyhow, the youtube video / podcast he posted was super eye opening. I don't usually take shit I read online at face value, but have been researching this for the last few weeks and have been able to verify most of what I heard in it from multiple sources. More importantly, the basics of whats being discussed regarding the health dangers of sugar and carbs versus the health benefits of fatty meat and fish, zero sugar, ultra low carb based diets like Keto and Paleo we're precisely what my doctor had said. In fact, he even touched on a lot of the points of the podcast such as how modern evidence based science has entirely contradicted the traditional food pyramid that's been fed to us (pun intended) for the last several decades and also how carbs have an almost addictive quality due to how poorly the satiate hunger, while also being much cheaper to produce and also having much longer shelf lives.

Anyhow, though this deserved a thread and deeper discussion. I'm curious how many others on here have been informed they have issues with high glucose or are pre diabetic or in fact already have type two diabetes?

Likewise, how many of you guys have already got on a Keto or Paleo type diet? Anyone have any links on the subject to share?

I think vast majority of Americans eat way too many carbs and think they're doing the right thing. The worst was when I realized how much sweetened, and or artificially sweetened drinks & fruit juices I've drank over the years. For anyone starting the weight loss process, I think it's crucial to first train your body to burn fat. After that calculate your caloric intake by writing down, and looking up every item you eat. Then create a caloric deficiency and watch the weight go down. I haven't gone all in on an atkins/keto diet for more than a couple weeks at a time.

I think carbs do have their place. Ideally, I want to get my metabolism up (via exercise) enough to ingest loads of carbs, lipids, and proteins. Going 100% in on a keto diet for an extended period of time reminds me of the people riding the backlash against weed persecution, that are convinced weed is "good for you". While the bullshit the government has been feeding us about weed isn't true, it helped me to start dealing with my issues head on, and sober most, if not all of the time. Like weed, diet isn't a one size fits all subject, and finding the right balance for an individual is crucial.

I'm actually on the same shit as theprotester myself even though I'm in my 40's now.

Lost the extra 40-50 lbs I used to carry around through dieting, and I still don't fuck with sugar. Working out almost every day now, and hoping to save money on the gym membership and just start running once the weather warms up. This recent cold snap and my increasing metabolism does allow for carb indulgence, which is pretty sweet considering I crave comfort foods during deep freezes.

I originally moved from sugar water (soft drinks/fruit juices) into artificially sweetened drinks. I also moved from adding sugar in the coffee/espresso to artificial sweeteners. I found the artificial sweeteners were not good for me for different reasons. I had an issue where I'd need to piss urgently, but once I got to the bathroom I'd only piss a little bit. This problem lead to me regularly pissing outside in the city. While I was losing weight, I knew I had somehow created or magnified another health issue.

Eventually, I moved away from drinking anything besides seltzer, then eventually only water throughout the day. I also started giving a fuck about the quality of coffee I got, and found that really good coffee requires zero sweetening. Every morning for the last 4 years I grind Yirgacheffe. It smells like lemons when it's being ground/brewed and is delicious. It's a light roast, which is counterintuitively much heavier in caffeine. I drink way too much for most people but for me it seems to work. There's actually an older Joe Rogan podcast where he had a coffee expert/historian that was hired by starbucks to promote some of the more exotic imports like Yirgacheffe as they were being introduced, wild interesting.

As far as supplements and vitamins go, I avoid them all now. During my weight loss when I wasn't eating enough to get the essential vitamins needed for healthy cell biology I supplemented using whey protein (lowest in carbs), to protect muscle mass during weight loss. I also ordered these gummy vitamins from amazon that you needed to eat 3 or 4 of throughout the day. Again, the only reason I took these supplements is that I wasn't going to get these essential nutrients from my diet.

My current diet allows for more calories, and I try to listen to what I'm craving for (outside of sugar) and have a belief your body will naturally seek out foods that have the vitamins and other nutrients you need. Absorbing nutrients naturally is far superior IMHO than ingesting processed/concentrated forms of these nutrients. The second half of my philosophy on nutrition is that: modern humans need to eat more calories (to get enough other basic nutrients from their food) than they can burn. Fighting the craving for sugar is good. Fighting the craving you'll naturally have for other foods to get nutrients that might cause a caloric surplus isn't good for you. Personally I feel best when I exercise enough to eat whatever I want.

TLDR- Refined sugars, and most carbs in general have little nutritional value. Try to burn enough calories so that you don't worry about your caloric intake and are able to feed yourself enough nutrient dense foods to cover your nutritional needs.

Yes, but maybe not for the same health issues/reasons. As might relate to your story... I don't keep snacks like cookies, cake, chips, or ice cream in the house. If I want any of that I'll have some occassionally while out. Pretty much gave up soda. Gave up juice other than a small glass of cranberry everyday. No sweetened drinks liked iced teas, Snapple, etc. Every day I make a pitcher of water with fresh squeezed lemon and a spoonful of honey to drink throughout the day. Got rid of cereal for breakfast (most are gut bombs) and will have a yogurt, eggs, or a filling fruit like a banana. Include fruits and/or vegetables in my daily eating. I eat a lot of spices in things too like cinnamon, chile, turmeric, ginger... stuff I happen to enjoy but that also happens to help with things like sugar cravings, digestion, circulation. Exercise every day in some form or another. Coffee was never intended to be loadad with milk, sugar, flavors, etc., so I have no problem taking it black or with a splash of milk at most. Good coffee, not necessarily expensive, does make a difference. Understanding what makes up my food has helped. Like cheesecake, which I loved when younger. If I break down a slice of cheesecake, would I eat that much plain cream cheese by itself? Hell no! Would I eat that much sugar by itself? Hell no! So I don't eat that shit anymore. I buy shit that is low sodium or no salt added. You can season it yourself and honestly if you flavor your food with spices and good ingredients you need far less in the way of flavor enhancers like salt/sugar. I also found that if I bought a bag of lightly salted chips there's not much taste difference from a regular bag so I go for the 'healthier' option. I don't consume anything with artifical sweetners. Other than health concerns and such, one other thing that helped me a bit was culture. Spent a lot of time surrounded by Chinese/Asian culture, where salty is highly valued and sweet, not so much. When I'm overseas there's not much in the way of American style food/snacks, and I don't find myself missing it too much. Gives time to try other foods and enjoy them, but also helps to realize that some foods are just better off without being loaded down with additives and shit. I try to avoid the highly salted dishes there too btw.

Meditation/relaxation for circulation, blood pressure, clear mind. Also some self-performed reflexology/pressure points- amazing how hitting a spot in the leg or foot opens up the breathing/sinuses, blood flow....

Agree with a bunch of what Mercer said... carb intake is of less importance when you're burning it up during a day. Carbs are also something that people and animals crave naturally for survival, like in Winter, so the body needs them, just have to look at where they come from and how they have been produced and/or altered before hitting your plate. Also type of carbs you eat can make a difference. I don't care for vitamins or fish oil. Did fish oil for a long time for the Omega-3 but noticed no other differences in mood or body. Would rather just get those nutrients through my diet, plus I don't find those pills to necessarily be trustworthy.

Finally, diets come and go. Unfortunately, the food industry colors a lot, even what we consider healthy/unhealthy, and today's supposed solution is tomorrow's cause of the problem. I just stick to the age old saying of proper diet and exercise.

I just try to avoid eating garbage; I don't adhere to any particular set of rules.

At my peak shape I was 185 and cut as fuck. Now I'm out of shape and about 190 (though have had a couple times I almost hit 200). I drink less alcohol, don't drink soda for the most part (indulge in energy drinks on occasion), eat fast food about once a week, and try to eat vegetables and fruit. But every once in a while I'll kill a pint of Ben and Jerry's or a sleeve of oreos (they've got a thin mint option out now that is retarded great with milk)
Once spring is here and I spend more time clearing my land (playing with chainsaws, axes, shovels, etc) I know I'll lose those 5-10 pounds of fat that could easily grow into a spare tire if I were to eat like shit too frequently.

My ex wife's master's thesis project was about sugar addictivity so I'm fairly versed in the subject matter, but I've tried to avoid unnecessary sugars for the most part since I was in middle school and got a fuck ton of cavities.

Thought of this thread later on today and had 2 other thoughts. Diet or self-discipline with food can be about state of mind as well. Like I hear people upset and disappointed, "oh man, I have to give up sweets." No, you don't. It's a choice. You can give them up. You can eat them occasionally. You can eat then all day every day until your teeth crumble. So there's state of mind, and making choices for myself. Then had the thought that some of the disappointment with limiting or giving up food is that the food industry has poured tons of $$ into making all this shit appear enjoyable... far more enjoyable then the product actually is. All those smiling laughing faces having Cokes and Big Macs... I've never seen someone that happy to eat that shit in real life unless it was like a Coast Guard ship handing one to a migrant who was lost at sea for months and was just discovered. But that stuff is ingrained from when we're kids, you get so used to it that you fail to see the connection between the two, and that is how companies shape our behavior.

I'll offer my angle which is similar. It feels like some of the older farts are in here talking about how their poops are working out for them.

I gave up sodas a while ago and one thing that helped me do that a lot was drinking Topo Chico. Yes, I know, that's probably some hipster drink in some peoples' eyes but the carbonation in it is a good substitute for the soda that is full of sugar. I drink a lot more water now and try to cook my own foods as much as I can. It's a hobby really and one thing this has led to for me is that I'm like a psychopath about the kitchen being clean. I probably got this from my mom because she is very adamant about the kitchen being clean at all times. This got me to thinking about how clean living all around is the path to health.... and I know this will be a tangent for some, but it's even affected me to the point to where I don't cuss as much as I did when I was younger. In any case, cutting out sugary drinks is a huge win for anyone looking to straighten up their health.

I haven't gotten to the "low carb" diet stuff myself yet but I feel like I'm headed there. I don't ingest a ton of bread or anything but I'm definitely not keeping track of my carb intake and I'd say it's probably more than it should be. As OMB said above, I don't keep snacks around. I rarely eat doritos or anything like that or little debbies. My weakness is Ben & Jerry's ice cream.... but I only get one small pint of that a month or so, probably less. It's more of a treat that I know to use sparingly. I used to eat a lot of candy but now I really don't eat any candy.

On the subject of coffee; I too am concerned about the quality of my coffee to the point of being kinda snobby about it. I recently bought a cold brew coffee maker:

I like cold brew because it's not acidic like coffee that is made w/ hot water and thus it's more smooth w/o a bite. It also doesn't "cook" the caffeine molecules so it's pretty strong in regards to the caffeine content.

Anyway, without raving/ranting too much I'd like to say that I'm glad to see this subject here on the forum. I think it's a sign of maturity in people when they care about themselves and other people recognize that too. You know when you see someone in public and you're like "they're a hoarder," or, "I bet their car is one of those 90's oldsmobiles that is stacked with stuff to the headliner and there's only enough room for the driver to barely sit in his seat and put the thing into drive." I'm never intrigued about such a person and I find it much more interesting to talk to people that visibly have their life together. I hope everyone reaches their goals they have, it's difficult to break long term habits. One thing that helps me out a lot is knowing that my time here on Earth is limited and I have to spend it wisely. I used to never think about that when I was younger doing stupid stuff all the time but now it's something I think about and consider a lot. This includes being nicer to people even if they are not very nice, it's not about taking a moral high ground or anything like that, it's just about doing what I know is the right thing to do. I try to check that off my list every day; doing the right thing (as best as I know how).

Edit: OMB - I see what you mean about the advertisement industry hitting us where it hurts. I "consume" very limited amounts of media for someone that used to consume quite a bit. I'm pretty choosy now about how I spend my time and I think I can attribute a lot of that to marketing in general. When you become jaded towards commercials where everyone is having a great time drinking coke you really begin to recognize the industry for what it is. They're pushers just like anyone selling heroine except they're potentially worse because what they're doing is technically legal and accepted by society. I think America, being as new of a society as it is, has a lot of growing to do. We may be powerful and successful and all that but it reminds me of the saying that when you're at the edge of the highest cliff you're one step away from being pushed off. Marketing/sales in general is kind of a turn off for me and I, being somewhat aware of my surroundings, find it an insult on my intelligence to be solicited anything in this day and age where information is readily available at our fingertips. You can look up and read about anything without someone putting it in your face to entice you to spend.

On another note, spending is a lot more than money related. You can spend your thoughts, your brain cycles, your time, your effort, your sanity, your good graces, etc. Once you're accountable for all those things I think people clean up a lot. It's like when you start counting where your money is going you start tightening up on saving and not spending on stuff so much. I think the same applies for the other things that humans spend in life; once they become cognizant of where they're spending their resources they become wise about how they're spent. The inverse is true in people that are not cognizant in that they will spend all of their resources.

I'm 40 this year and am still the same size I was at 18
I don't eat excessively but I do eat whatever I want. I only eat when hungry so rarely stick to meal times.
I don't drive so walk everywhere which is my exercise.
Rarely eat lots of sweet stuff and sugar and rarely drink sugary drinks (apart from sugar I have in coffee)

I certainly don't think I'm healthy but I'm also not unhealthy. I need to cut down on caffeine as drink maybe 20 cups of coffee a day

Edit: OMB - I see what you mean about the advertisement industry hitting us where it hurts. I "consume" very limited amounts of media for someone that used to consume quite a bit. I'm pretty choosy now about how I spend my time and I think I can attribute a lot of that to marketing in general. When you become jaded towards commercials where everyone is having a great time drinking coke you really begin to recognize the industry for what it is. They're pushers just like anyone selling heroine except they're potentially worse because what they're doing is technically legal and accepted by society. I think America, being as new of a society as it is, has a lot of growing to do. We may be powerful and successful and all that but it reminds me of the saying that when you're at the edge of the highest cliff you're one step away from being pushed off. Marketing/sales in general is kind of a turn off for me and I, being somewhat aware of my surroundings, find it an insult on my intelligence to be solicited anything in this day and age where information is readily available at our fingertips. You can look up and read about anything without someone putting it in your face to entice you to spend.

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Awareness is a good beginning, our moods and attitudes are manipulated by these companies to enjoy their product, or to feel bad about not doing so. I like that you put "consume" in quotes because it speaks to another level of this- you don't actually have to actively seek these ads to be affected, they're literally thrown in your face in pop-ups, billboards, really anywhere these advertisers can get their names. You end up consuming a lot subconsciously and since food is the topic here, it does shape our views of food/diet/image*. And again, this has been done to us since we were children, like with the McDonaldland misfit gang, so even though we are now developing conscious awareness of all this, there are still behavioral mechanisms in place that are connected to our thoughts/feelings that we still need to extinguish, and that's a challenge.

2 asides stimulated by former/current conversation- the movie theater industry has masterfully paired soda/popcorn/movie such that a lot of people would feel something was missing, the experience was less, if they went to the movies and didn't have the soda/popcorn. Last time I went to the movies I noticed that the soda/popcorn, street value of maybe $2, cost almost as much as the 2 movie tickets?!?! Bravo movie theaters, playing the public like a cheap instrument and raking in the $$ at the expense of your health. Small example of how that fucks with your diet.

I hate solicitors and do everything I can to thwart them. But... hard for me to get mad because I understand the science behind that. People are drawn to the familiar. You get hit with a few annoying ads for some discount store and you feel like you want to change the channel or throw that circular straight into the recycling but you're already being gotten because you're developing an emotional reaction toward that store. Now 6 months later you need a product that store happens to sell and your brain runs back through the files seeking a reference for said product and hey- what's that page sticking up in the back of the files there- it's that fucking discount store! And you know what, annoying as it is, because humans find comfort in the familiar, as well as quick/simple solutions, there is a greater likelihood that you're heading to that store or at least looking at it first for your product.

*This is a graf site, so little graf footnote- when Shepard Fairey started out with the Obey stickers he quickly noticed that part of what drew the public's attention/interest to the image was kind of confusion- they were not used to be being bombarded with an icon that had no apparent product relation or message on what to think/feel!